A Beginner’s Guide to Theodicy, the Good Samaritan, and Filthy Hope
Last Sunday at St David’s, we looked again at the familiar story of the Good Samaritan — a tale where compassion crosses boundaries and love becomes action. It’s a parable that doesn’t just tell us what to believe, but shows us how to live.
Aploligies to any Collingwood supporters for the illustration, you could playfully insert any rivalry here!
But there’s a deeper question many of us quietly ask when we read stories like this. Why was there a man beaten on the road in the first place? If God is good, why was there violence, pain, and people who walked by?
This is the heart of a big theological idea called theodicy — a word that simply means “God’s justice.” It’s how we wrestle with this central tension:
If God is all-loving, and God is all-powerful, why is there so much suffering in the world?
🧠So What Is Theodicy?
Theodicy is theology’s way of asking, “Where is God in all of this?” It’s the name we give to our heartbreak and our hope, our doubt and our faith, when life falls apart or the world feels unjust.
- Why do innocent people suffer?
- Why doesn’t God stop it?
- Does God even care?
These aren’t just abstract questions — they’re real and raw, the kind you feel in hospital rooms, refugee camps, and lonely prayers.
🎧 What Filthy Hope Had to Say
In episode #161 of the Filthy Hope podcast, the team tackles this exact question. They don’t offer cheap answers. Instead, they point to a Jesus who doesn’t stay distant, but steps into the mess with us. A Christ who bleeds. A Spirit who groans. A God who is with us, not above us.
One of the standout lines from the episode was:
“Maybe hope isn’t about escaping suffering, but refusing to let suffering have the last word.”
That’s a very Good Samaritan kind of theology.
🛣️ A Roadside Theodicy
Back to the parable.
The priest and Levite walk past — maybe because they’ve worked out a clean, tidy theodicy: “He must have deserved it,” or “It’s not my problem.” But Jesus celebrates the one who doesn’t try to explain the suffering — the Samaritan just responds to it.
And maybe that’s the best kind of theodicy for beginners (and pros): not the one that explains pain, but the one that refuses to ignore it.
🌻 So Where Is God When It Hurts?
Not just in heaven. Not watching from afar.
God is:
- with the bleeding man on the side of the road,
- in the tears of the helpers,
- and in the hands of those who show up.
Theodicy doesn’t always give us answers. But it can point us toward compassion, action, and a God who suffers with us.
🪔 Keep Asking, Keep Loving
At St David’s, we believe asking hard questions is holy work. That wrestling with faith doesn’t mean you’re losing it — it means you’re living it.
So if you’re asking “Where is God in this mess?”, you’re in good company — with the prophets, the podcast hosts, and a certain man from Samaria who just wouldn’t walk by.
Let’s not walk by either.
St Davids Newtown Uniting 